"Minivehicle" manufactured in Japan is unique in the car category of the world. In terms of car size, there are a number of types of small cars in Europe, particularly in France and Italy, but the Japanese small car with engine capacity of 660cc was historically developed from the national car project, so its auto tax and insurance premium are kept extremely low compared to a normal passenger car.

The minivehicle is so popular in Japan that it now comprises 35 percent of all the cars owned across the nation. The leading passenger car of such small size is "ALTO" made by Suzuki Motor Corporation. It has taken root in the market over 30 years since its debut in 1979 and undergone several model changes up to the latest seventh generation, keeping pace with the times. In a move to enhance performance and safety, Suzuki has stepped up engine capacity and enlarged the body size over the past 10 years.

The new ALTO in its seventh generation ensures smoother and more comfortable motoring with wheelbase extended to 2,400 millimeters like a normal passenger car, yet providing stress-free drivability which is characteristic of a small car. Some time ago, minivehicle was obviously inferior to normal car in steering and other drivability; however, its recent models, including ALTO, have almost paralleled in this regard. The technological achievements on minivehicle are really awesome.

The most popular model in Japan is represented by a tall wagon-type car that came into fashion with a boom of "Suzuki Wagon R." ALTO inherits in shape the traditional mainstream of sedan and van. The seventh- generation ALTO is so refined in style that it was nominated to the Good Design Award for 2009.

The interior is simple and well-designed to the optimum. Ingenious storage space is put in place tastefully at several locations. Driver's space is made functional as the seat, adjustable in height, can be slid back and forth in 24 notches by one centimeter for user's comfort. The vehicle is outfitted with tilt steering wheel so that the driver can adjust its height to an appropriate position. Thus, every detail is perfect despite the compact dimensions. This is the big appeal of Japanese minivehicle makers.

When you have a test ride, you will be impressed by the spaciousness of the cabin. It is probably because the wheelbase is that of the normal passenger car. With the 660cc three-cylinder engine without turbocharger, the initial speed may be a bit slow, but once you get going, you would feel quite at home with driving through the city roads. The driving performance is so good that you would almost forget you are running the minivehicle.

Note that it goes 24.5 kilometers per liter (according to the automaker's literature). When you take a ride, you will realize it is almost equal in performance to Honda's hybrid car "Insight." The secret for the good gas mileage is the new technology called Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT). It has a mechanism by which the transmission geared to D-range at standstill, like waiting for stoplights, shifts to neutral automatically, and that contributes to good mileage as it releases loads on the engine. In product lineup of ALTO, there are orthodox four-speed automatic transmission and five-speed manual transmission available, but look at the technological advance achieved on CVT!

Minivehicle is in a car category unique to Japan. Eco-car is booming all over the world. Compact and high-efficient car is the trend of today. You cannot take your eyes off from the development of the Japanese minivehicle.